Kayla Itsines is the creator of the Bikini Body Guides (BBG) , which are 28-minute workout videos that subscribers access on the SWEAT app. Many fans asked her advice on how to modify some of the more advanced exercises to their beginner needs, which prompted the fitness trainer to create a short video demonstrating substitute moves that they can do.
On Wednesday, the Australian native took to social media platform Instagram to post the video, earning many grateful comments from her 12.2 million followers.
For the workout, Kayla wears a light purple sports bra that leaves plenty of skin exposed and shows off her toned abdomen. Forgoing her typical black gym shorts, the fitness guru sports a pair of slightly baggy white shorts that match her equally white sneakers. A white Apple Watch can also be spotted on her left wrist. Kayla pulled her long, brunette tresses up into a high bun that prevented loose strands from falling in her face as she performed the workout.
The video, shot in her sunny living room, is designed with the frame split into two horizontal halves. In the top half, Kayla performs the normal move while in the bottom half, she demonstrates the modified exercise.
The first exercise that Kayla teaches is called the snap push-up. While the non-modified move involves placing the body into a push-up position and then jumping forward and back before doing a normal push-up, Kayla teaches her followers how to do the hover to plank with push-up substitute. Instead of jumping with both legs and following up with a push-up, the modified move forgoes the push-up and involves stepping forward, one leg at a time.
The second move is the Russian twist, which is targeted to the core. While sitting with her legs crossed and raised, Kayla holds an exercise ball and taps it on the floor, alternating sides. The modified move is the heel tap, in which trainees keep their feet planted on the floor with their knees raised and alternate touching their feet.
The third exercise is the outward snap jump, which Kayla modifies to the in and out plank. Instead of supporting her weight on both arms and jumping her legs open and closed, in the modified move, Kayla supports herself on her forearms and steps her legs to each side.
Kayla’s Instagram followers were happy to learn a few substitute exercises for the harder moves that she teaches in the BBG videos.
“These are brilliant! As someone weathering a couple of impact related injuries, I appreciate all your low impact options!” one follower wrote.
